President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump jointly hosted a joyous Easter celebration Monday morning at the White House, carrying on an iconic American tradition of springtime fun.
The president and Mrs. Trump stood on the White House South Portico – joined by the Easter bunny – and listened to the national anthem, sung by a member of the U.S. Marine Band.
The president wished everyone a “very happy Easter” and noted that 42,000 people were expected to attend the Easter Egg Roll event on Monday.
He also opened his remarks by announcing that he had signed an executive order directing flags on all federal and state buildings to fly at half-mast in honor of the passing of Pope Francis.
“He was a good man, [he] worked hard, he loved the world,” he said.
Trump additionally thanked the U.S. Marine Band and the National Park Service for their part in helping the event come together. Perhaps most importantly, he thanked Mrs. Trump for her hard work in spearheading the organization of this event.
“I just want to give a special thank you to our great First Lady who organized this entire event, she worked very hard on this,” he said.
The Easter Egg Roll at the White House dates back to 1878, under the presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes, although some celebrations have been reported to have taken place as early as President Abraham Lincoln’s term, per RSBN.
President Trump briefly noted how well the country was doing under his administration, adding, “Our country is doing very well.”
He brought the conversation back to Easter by proclaiming it was “one of our favorite days – it’s one of our favorite periods of time. We’re honoring Jesus Christ. We’re going to honor Jesus Christ very powerfully throughout our lives.”
Trump continued, “We’re bringing religion back in America….I just want to wish everybody, once again, happy Easter, and enjoy your lives! We’re going to have a great four years.”
President Trump and the First Lady then joined the families at the White House to partake in some of the fun games planned for children, take photos, and talk to members of his staff.